Posted on 10/10/2019 3:59:20 PM PDT by SamAdams76
I just realized that I have had my automobile - a Nissan Murano - for nearly 5 years and have driven it for over 120,000 miles and I have yet to pop the hood on it even once. I thought of this because I had it in for service last week and the mechanic told me that a squirrel, or some other rodent-like animal had built a nest under the air filter. Yet how would I know? I've never looked under the hood! In fact, I don't even know where the handle it to do that though I suspect it's under the steering wheel someplace, probably off to the left by the emergency brake release - something else I've never once used on my current car.
I know that is a "girly" thing to say but I think it is testament to how reliable automobiles are today. Basically if you get the oil changes done on time with the other scheduled maintenance, the cars will pretty much run for a hundred thousand miles (or more) with no issues.
Back in my early days of car ownership during the 1970s and 1980s, I was opening up the hood at least once a week. Constantly checking fluid levels, making sure there was enough coolant in the radiator, tightening (and timing) the belts, cleaning corrosion off the battery terminals, etc.
Now none of that! I bring the car in about every 5,000 miles, get the scheduled maintenance done and the car just runs.
I do still know how to change a flat tire though so in that respect, I'm still a step ahead of your average millennial.
Now Bill Parcells. Whatever happened to that guy? He used to be big head coach of NFL football. I think the Giants and Patriots mostly but perhaps the Jets and Dolphins too for a stretch. Anyway, he was the cat's pajamas so far as NFL coaches went back in the day. He was always on the TV on Sunday afternoons jabbering about this or that on the sidelines and usually in the closing minutes removing his headset and slamming it into the ground.
When he was head coach of the Patriots, he was always giving the Boston media a rash of s*it and I always liked him for that. He would tell the reporters off whenever they asked a stupid question. If he's still alive (and Wikipedia leads me to believe he is because they are always quick to update their articles on notable people when one of them dies), I would recommend President Trump making him the next Press Secretary because even though Parcells didn't win quite as many games or Super Bowls as Bill Belichick, he is really good at putting reporters in their places.
Speaking of Wikipedia updating deaths virtually as soon as they happen, I couldn't get to Ric Ocasek's article fast enough when he died a few weeks back. As soon as I got the Tweet that the frontman of The Cars was dead, I hustled over to Wikipedia and once again, somebody there beat me to the punch.
I am convinced that there is a fairly large group of people out there that do nothing but update Wikipedia articles on celebrities with their deaths and then sit their poised with their finger on the post button. Therefore when the death of Ric Ocasek, that tall lanky guy with the dark sunglasses that was frontman for The Cars, went out on the wires late on September 15th, whoever's turn it was to monitor the Ocasek article, jammed his/her finger on the ENTER key and posted the death just milliseconds later.
So now both Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr of The Cars are dead and that is a bummer for me because I really liked their music. Back in the day, when they were still churning out hits and when I was just a young guy who only had to shave every three days or so, I could not tell the difference between their singing. I could never figure out who it was handling lead vocals on a particular track until I read the liner notes from the album or got the information some other way. I remember seeing The Cars on some late night show, maybe it was Saturday Night Live or Midnight Special or something, where I was shocked to see Benjamin Orr singing "Bye Bye Love" when I also pictured in my mind Ric Ocasek singing that song.
As I got older, I was then able to pick out their voices. But I think it was after I got into my 30s and developed a more sophisticated ear for that sort of thing. That was also around the time I could start telling the voices of Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel apart and that's not an easy thing to do either to the untrained ear.
Does anybody besides me notice that the new iPhone 11 looks a little bit like the Norelco razor? I'm creeped out by that everytime I see those three cameras. They look just like the three razors on a Norelco electric razor. I would not feel comfortable holding that up to my ear.
Finally, you splurge on a nice bottle of wine and you pour yourself a glass of it and go out to your patio to watch the sunset. Suddenly, a little fruit fly flies into it and you look down and see this disgusting little fly swimming around in your glass of wine.
Do you dump the wine into the sink and pour yourself another (expensive) glass? Or do you just pretend there is no fly in there and continue drinking?
Serious question. Especially if it is a more expensive wine. I could see if it was two-buck Chuck. Just dump it and pour another glass. But what if it was a $40 bottle of a fine zin from some obscure California valley?
Or maybe you take an in-between approach and you stick your finger into your glass to scoop the fly out and flick it onto the grass or the patio deck.
OK. But now as you finish the glass, you have to think about how many germs the fly left behind and you also have to think about where your finger has been over the past few hours.
Certainly these are some things to ponder as we await the Trump rally in Minnesota tonight.
Bert?
Did you ever get your “+” sign back?
I keep a windex squirt bottle next to me for nailing those pesky insects. To many times as you try to swat them you tip over the glass. Spray them and then squish them as they sputter on the counter or table. Don’t spray in your glass!
If they’re in your glass get a spoon or whatever and fish it out. Continue on enjoying your wine and evening.
My favorite up beat song
Hey...did you see. ....
Did you see .....
Did you see...dancing
Really love their shoes. ..WO HOO....
Or peanut butter.
If it's really good, pick out the bug and keep going.
If you're already tipsy, beware the protein with wings floating in your glass before lifting it to drink a mouthful....
I remember opening my hood all the time when I first started out. Even changed my own spark plugs back in the day and replaced a fan belt or two. Nowadays, things are typically run to failure.
Another example is with computers. I used to constantly pop the cover off my home computer and mess around with it. Used to install my own memory, expansion cards, hard drives, etc.
It's been at least 15 years since I have had the cover off a computer.
John Wayne said once to to Glen Campbell, “good God she reminds me of me”....
Then later he said, “damn Texican. ...saved my life twice. ...once when he was dead...”
John Wayne said once to to Glen Campbell, good God she reminds me of me....
Then later he said, damn Texican. ...saved my life twice. ...once when he was dead...>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Chief Dan George and Clint Eastwood,( Outlaw Josey Wales, one of my favorite movies):
Lone Watie : [Josey has walked up on Lone and Moonlight having sex] Howdy.
Josey Wales : Howdy.
Lone Watie : Somethin’ wrong?
Josey Wales : Uh, no.
Lone Watie : I guess you were right.
[smiles]
Lone Watie : I ain’t that old after all.
Depends. A vegetarian should dump the whole thing and get a clean glass. Oh, and a vegetarian should keep their life choices to themselves.
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